NYCC 2013: DC Comics – The NEW 52 Panel - 'WALLY Will Return'

By Lucas Siegel, Site Editor October 12, 2013 02:36pm ET

John Cunningham introduced the last DC Comics panel of Saturday, their New 52 panel, starting with Brian Buccellato, and moving to James Tynion, Paul Levitz, Nicola Scott, Cliff Chiang, and Charles Soule.

The Flash #24 is the final issue by the full team of Buccellato and Francis Manapul. Buccellato will have one more issue after, but says this one is special and finishes with “The End.” The team will move on to Detective Comics, which he says is “super exciting.”

Levitz was next with Worlds’ Finest. He teased that Power Girl's powers will be fluctuating a bit going from "scary powerful" to "not quite working."

Nicola Scott talked about Earth 2 #16, and said "in our universe, compared to the primary universe, the heroes don't always win." She loved working with Robinson, and is now excited for incoming writer Tom Taylor, who like Scott is Austrailian.

Credit: DC Comics

Wonder Woman #24 starts "year 3 of our epic," said Cliff Chiang. The issue will deal with her new status quo as the God of War in the Greek pantheon. The cover to #27 was shown, with a bunch of shattered (and bloody) statues. "Her war with the first born is going to escalate and she'll need all the help she can get - which may include some of her sisters."

Swamp Thing #24 brought Soule into the spotlight. The Seeder is finally confronted by Swamp Thing, and it turns out he is Jason Woodrue, "a character from Swamp Thing history." After they fight, "the council of trees says they like Woodrue and are going to let him fight for the role as Avatar of the Green."

Swamp Thing Annual #2 will see him confront the council of trees and learn more about his role, and introduce the Burgher Thing, an old avatar from Germany.

Red Hood and the Outlaws #24 (out next week) will reveal much of the mysteries Tynion has been setting up for his run. Jason Todd is the head of the League of Assassins now, but he has a specific reason for doing that. "This leads into our Zero Year issue, then back for the finale of the arc. We've torn the Outlaws down, and now we're going to bring them back together.

"The Zero Year issue will show how the Red Hood gang affects Jason Todd's life while he's growing up in Crime Alley. It's an incredible set piece that takes place in the past, and all of the creators doing Zero Year issues are really excited about how we get to focus on the characters for it."

Talon #12 has "everything I've been building towards for the first year of the series," Tynion said. The issue will bring Batman in, and we'll see how and why he disapproves of Calvin operating in the city. "All of his fears will be proven right, and it makes for a hell of a story."

Fan Q&A started next with a requisite Wally West question. Brian Buccellato said "everything in its due time; when the time is right, Wally will return."

A fan asked about more diversity in characters, Nicola Scott said to read Earth 2 where there will be a lot of new diverse characters coming in.

When asked, DC could give no update on Booster Gold's status, or why he disappeared when Superman and Wonder Woman kissed.

How will the art on Detective Comics compare to Flash? "Francis has a lot more tricks in him. The color palette will be very different, and we'll be tuning the art toward Batman and Gotham City. Google Francis Manapul Batman, you'll be amazed."

A question about some characters from the Young Justice TV show (Khaldur, Miss Martian, and Artemis were named by the fan) possibly coming into the New 52, and about a re-expansion of the teen hero comic lineup at DC Comics was responded to with a simple "Yes," which drew applause from the crowd.

A young fan asked about Earth 2 and if Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman will return in that book, and Nicola Scott told him to check out Earth 2 #16 out now for a partial answer to that question.

The Injustice title is coming back in 2014, and will deepen the story, but Cunningham couldn't tell much about the series direction yet.

A fan did some research on female creators at DC, and the fans's perceived the lack thereof, especially on the art side. Cunningham said that "it is an issue of much discussion and much effort going forward from DC." Scott added, "as a girl in the comic book industry, I have never felt that has affected the way I've been treated by DC."

"Tim Drake will be a key figure in Batman: Eternal," Tynion revealed, the new weekly series that will also feature the introduction of Stephanie Brown to the New 52.

Tynion doesn't feel that Talon's ability to regenerate "cheapens the character" as a fan asked. "The emotional arc is something I've put a lot of effort into, and it was actually part of the conception of the character."

Cyborg is "central and extremely important" to Geoff Johns' plans for the next year, Cunningham said to a fan asking about his status.

Where did Wonder Woman's pants go? Chiang said that the black pants on black boots made "her lower half very heavy, visually." He said it's much easier to show motion with the variance of color thanks to her legs." Scott added that she loves the iconic look.

For the final question, a fan asked about The Question getting his own comic, which Cunningham said "Thank you for coming today... we won't be making any big 2014 announcements now, if that may be one of them" in a cheeky tease.